It Had to Be You
by Kristen Elizabeth
Summary: There are many ways love can hurt. Lovemaking should never be one of them.
1. A Good Man is Hard to Find

Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: To follow.

* * *

It Had to Be You

by Kristen Elizabeth

* * *

**1921**

I was almost used to being constantly ravenous. It was hunger like I had never known, not even when I'd carried my precious baby boy. This craving was so far from the ones I'd had for meat pies and strawberry ice cream. Those had been innocent, full of wonder and joy as I nourished myself in order to nourish the tiny life inside of me.

But now…blood was on my mind all the time and no matter how many woodland creatures I drank dry, my thirst was never fully sated. I suspected it wouldn't be until the day I gave in to my darkest temptation and sank my teeth into human flesh.

It was a day I hoped would never come, not only because it would mean that I'd taken a life, but also because I might lose the one thing I'd grown to depend so desperately upon: Carlisle's approval.

Thinking about him always seemed to bring him to me, as if Edward wasn't the only one who could see my thoughts. One second, I was alone in the parlor of our stately home, staring out into the woods from behind the protection of the curtains I'd recently installed; in the next, he was behind me, surrounding me with his clean, male scent.

"You know, I never realized how much we needed lace curtains until you came along, Esme."

"I doubt that." I turned my head just enough to give him a smile. "You survived almost three hundred years without a woman's touch, after all."

I hadn't meant for my words to carry such a double meaning. If it had been possible, blood would have rushed to my cheeks.

Carlisle took a step back, away from me. Immediately I missed the solidity of his body next to mine.

From a safe distance away, he lightly cleared his throat. "How are you feeling? Do you need to hunt?"

"Tonight, perhaps," I replied although I had no doubt that I would. The need for blood coursed through my entire body. But it was dampened now by another need, a desire that I had only just recently acknowledged. I waited for a second before I asked, "Will you join me?"

He inclined his perfect head just enough to give me the answer I'd hoped for. "Edward is out the woods right now," he continued, answering my second question before I'd even formed it. "We shall be alone tonight."

Every now and then, when he wasn't concentrating on maintaining any particular facade, I could hear his age in his words, the way he chose to phrase certain things. _Shall, ought,_ even an occasional _thou_. It never failed to bring a smile to my lips. Above all else, Carlisle was a gentleman. Older, wiser, controlled…a mystery of a beautiful man. I could see myself learning something new about him centuries from now.

Perhaps that was why I had fallen so deeply in love with him so very quickly.

* * *

At dusk, when the first stars began to appear in the sky, I let him lead me down an unfamiliar path from our house and into the dense maze of trees and shrubbery. There was a chill in the air, but neither of us felt it. When he began running, I followed, breaking no sweat in order to keep up with him.

I had left my beautiful dresses behind in favor of a simple frock that wouldn't hold me back and could be easily washed clean of any blood I spilled. Although somewhat plain compared to what was in my closet, the dress was still fashionably short, ending only a few inches below my knees and showing off more of my legs than I was used to baring. I wasn't sure if Carlisle had noticed or not.

We fed, a graceful buck for me and a snarling panther for him. The thirst for blood would return soon, but for the moment, I could concentrate on other things, such as the way the moon's light illuminated his hair as it filtered through the canopy of the trees or the way his hand felt warm and strong when he threaded his fingers through mine as we walked.

Coming into a large clearing in the woods, there was ample light from the moon, enough so that I noticed the bloodstains on the front of my dress.

"Will I ever learn to feed as you do?" I complained. "Without spilling a drop?"

Carlisle's eyes were darker than the topaz I was used to seeing. This puzzled me as he had just fed and shouldn't have such intensity in his stare. "You're still so young," he said, his voice low and strained. "It will come. In time. Just be…just be patient."

I had the strangest feeling that those last few words were not entirely meant for me. Frowning, I reached up to touch his cheek. He flinched away from my touch, ripping his hand away from mine in his haste to put as much distance between us as possible.

"Don't," he barked from several feet away. It was the first time he'd raised his voice to me. "Esme…" He looked at me like it hurt him to do so. "Do you realize what's happening here?"

I shook my head, but I was lying. In truth, I was frightened, too. Although I'd been married and a mother, I had never been in love like this. My wedding night had been embarrassing and painful, and every time that followed had been a chore. My wifely duty. The only good to come of it had been my son.

Would Carlisle hurt me as my husband had? Was that why he was so upset? Did he know, as a doctor and an immortal being, that women could truly take no pleasure from the physical act of intercourse?

But I was stronger now. If there was pain, I could bear it. I would bear it. He was my provider, my savior, my love, and I would do anything to make him happy.

My fingers were shaking, but I somehow managed to undo the buttons of my dress. The fabric slipped off my shoulders and pooled at my feet, leaving me in nothing but a lace and silk step-in chemise that left little to the imagination.

The neckline of the undergarment was scooped and low, exposing my upper chest which was sticky with the buck's blood that had seeped through the dress. I put my hand to my silk-covered breast for a moment, almost imagining that I could feel my heart beating faster. I was sure it would have if it had been possible.

Across the clearing, Carlisle was staring at me like a man on the brink of madness. His shoulders lifted and fell with rapid breaths that he didn't need.

"Esme." He whispered my name this time. I could barely hear it on the wind. "We shouldn't do this. Not yet. Not until we're…"

"I've been married," I reminded him. "Making the act legitimate did not make it pleasurable." I closed my eyes for a moment. "I want this. No matter how much it hurts. I want you, Carlisle."

When I opened my eyes again, he was standing mere inches away from me, having covered the distance between us in the time it took me to blink. I looked up into his dark amber stare. There was an amused smile on his lips that had no place in such a moment as this. I frowned. "What is so funny?"

"My precious Esme," he murmured, running his fingers through my recently cut bob of curls. "Do you believe for a moment that I would ever do anything that would hurt you?"

I wasn't certain what to say. It was hard to come up with words when he was touching me. "You would never mean to, but…some things cannot be…" His fingers, those long doctor's fingers gently massaged my scalp, making speaking so difficult. "…cannot be helped."

My feet left the ground and I found myself swept up in his arms before I could protest. Not that I would have, especially after he immediately laid me down on a soft patch of grass. His body covered mine; his face blocked out the moon. It seemed only natural for my knees to drift apart, to better fit our bodies together.

But Carlisle had other ideas. When he leaned down, I was sure he was going to kiss me, as I'd wanted him do to for a very long time, but instead, he lowered his lips to my collar. I gasped when I felt his tongue on my flesh. Slowly, gently, lovingly, he licked the deer's blood from my skin until I felt myself shivering from the sensations I'd never imagined.

There was strange warmth at the center of my body, a throbbing that was growing in intensity. When he was done, Carlisle lifted his head and looked down at me. "Say the word and I shall stop."

It was all I could do to shake my head against the pillow of grass and moss beneath us. With that encouragement, he hooked a finger around the slim strap of my chemise and tugged it down, baring my breast.

The night air was cool, but his mouth was warm as he suckled me. It was nothing like the gentle tug of my baby as he'd fed, and so far removed from the pain of my husband's teeth as he'd marked me. This was heaven, if there was such a thing. I never wanted it to stop. I plunged my fingers into Carlisle's hair, holding him to my breast, only allowing him to move to its twin, to repeat the same delicious attention.

He broke free of my grasp with a low growl and rose up over me on his knees. I stared at him in wonder. The man who was capable of such incredible control…he was coming undone right before my eyes. And I was the cause. There was power here, but it wasn't solely in his hands.

I sat up, unashamed at being half-naked in the moonlight. He glanced away, as if ashamed of something. It was only then that I noticed the bulge below his waist, the strain of his pants. I swallowed heavily. Although it worried me, knowing what would happen soon, I wasn't entirely afraid anymore.

When I reached for the buttons at his fly, Carlisle grasped my wrist, easily circling it in his hand. "'Tis not too late to stop," he said, his accent slipping into his words as though he'd left London only yesterday.

"It was too late to stop this from the moment I awoke into this life," I told him. "I opened my eyes and you were there. Everything changed."

He lowered his chin to his chest. "I was selfish then. I saw a beautiful woman who had been broken…and I couldn't bear it. I should have given you a choice."

With one finger, I lifted his face back up until I could look into his eyes. "I would have made this one."

"You wanted to die," he reminded me as gently as possible.

I shook my head. "When I saw you, I wanted to live."

Carlisle released my hand and did nothing more to stop me. In fact, he helped as I struggled with his suspenders. He tugged his shirt free of his pants and pulled it over his head before I even had the first button undone. His bare body was like a wall of solid marble muscle and I wanted to explore every inch of it.

Then he kissed me and I couldn't think of anything, not even my own name. His lips fit mine perfectly without a trace of awkwardness. This was the man I supposed to kiss for the rest of my existence, however long that might be. Edward might not have been certain that we still possessed souls, but I was convinced. I had found my soul's mate.

I was prepared for pain, searing, stretching, numbing pain. I never expected the pleasure. It caught me off guard from the moment he entered me. My eyes flew open in surprise. It felt so right, so good. Did that make me wanton? I bit my lip, willing the warm feelings away. I didn't want him to know how much I was enjoying this.

Upon seeing my face, Carlisle froze still. "Am I hurting you?"

I tried to nod, but I couldn't lie to him. "No," I whispered. My hands drifted down the corded length of his arms as they strained to hold himself up over me. "Is it because of what I am now?"

He frowned. "What do you mean?"

I shifted my body and the slight motion made our hips grind together. He closed his eyes and inhaled sharply. I couldn't hold back a slight gasp of my own.

"I'm sorry," I apologized even though it felt so wonderful.

Carlisle forced his eyes open. "Whatever for?"

"I shouldn't be…" I turned my head, escaping the heat of his stare. "Only a certain kind of woman enjoys this. And apparently…I'm one of them now."

When he chuckled, I whipped my head back to see him. My expression must have matched my suddenly bruised pride because he quickly kissed me. "Esme," he murmured, pulling back. "There are many ways to be hurt by love. But this kind of love...it should never cause pain, whether one is human or not. Do you understand?"

I answered him by raising my head from the grass and kissing him. The center of my body felt like liquid heat, threatening to boil over if he did not do something more than just lie still inside of me.

The moon bathed us in light as we made love. And it was love. I was absolutely sure of that. When he called my name, thrust against me, pinned my hands to the ground and for one long, wonderful moment lost all control, I had no doubt that we would be together until one of us died. If that was even possible for us. I still had so much to learn. If it wasn't, I was perfectly content to spend an eternity with Carlisle.

We lay in the clearing for a long time. Curled up against him, my cheek rested on his pale, but perfect chest. His fingers danced up and down my arm making me shiver every now and then.

"Edward will know the moment we return," I said after a long time. Although he was physically only a handful of years younger than me, I had begun to think of Edward as my son. I had no desire to make our still-new relationship awkward by unconsciously revealing too much of the night's events to him.

"If I ask him not to look into our thoughts, he'll respect our privacy." I felt Carlisle's lips press a kiss into my hair. "At least until after our wedding."

"Is that a proposal?"

"A bad one," he admitted. He sat up, forcing me up as well. There, in the middle of the woods, naked as the day we were born, Carlisle took my hand. "My plan was marriage first, lovemaking afterwards. That's the example I wanted to give Edward."

With misty eyes, I smiled. "He'll never hear differently from me. This will be our secret."

"Will you marry me, Esme?" Carlisle brought my hands together and kissed them both. "Be my wife. Be Edward's mother. Put curtains on all of our windows and make any house we live in a true home."

It was everything I wanted. Unaware of my own strength, I pushed him to the ground and began loving him all over again. Wanton? Perhaps. Did I care? No.

The great irony of my life is that I didn't begin to live it until I was already dead.

* * *

Fin (for now)

A/N: I'm rather interested in turning this into a series, with Rosalie and Emmett being next. If it's something you'd care to see continued, let me know. In either case, thank you for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it;)


	2. The Way You Look Tonight

Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Thank you so much for the incredibly kind words on the last chapter. I hope you enjoy this one, too!

* * *

It Had to Be You

by Kristen Elizabeth

* * *

**1936**

I swear I'd never seen anything more beautiful in my life. The way she slipped smoothly through the trees, over the rocks, on silent feet, ever the elegant predator… she was grace and power and I wanted her.

She knew I was coming. She recognized my scent, much like I sensed hers from so far away. We locked stares and for a moment, we simply watched each other. I knew right then that she would be mine.

I leapt without warning. She put up a fight, but although she was as strong as me, I was bigger. When I sank my teeth in her furry neck, her blood flooded down my throat and the burning thirst stopped. The mountain lion went limp in my arms as I drank my fill.

She was not human, but she satisfied me for the time being. She kept me from wandering into town and finding what I truly desired.

She made it possible for me to go home and face the only creature I earth I wanted more.

Rosalie was curled up in the parlor reading when I arrived. Or at least that's what she wanted me to think she'd been doing while I was hunting. But as soon as I walked in the door, I'd heard the pages of her book rustle as she hastily flipped it open, as well as the whisper of her dress against her legs as she arranged herself in her favorite chair.

She had been anxious while I was gone and now that I was back, she didn't want me to know it. I didn't need to have Edward's freakish skills to pick up on that. There was only so much Rosalie could hide from me, because no one else paid half as much attention to her as I did.

"I'm back," I announced unnecessarily. "Anybody home?"

When I came into the parlor, pretending to search for someone, Rosalie made a great show of looking up from her book. "So you are." Her perfect little nose turned up just a nudge. "Where's Carlisle? He was supposed to be watching you."

Did she really have to be so damn beautiful? Was I honestly supposed to spend the rest of what could be a very long existence doing my very best to resist her when all I really wanted was to tackle her to the ground and shut that gorgeous mouth up with mine?

"Lost track of each other," I told her. "I figured we'd meet up back here." There were a few smears of blood on the sleeves of my plaid shirt. They were a weak excuse to strip it off, but I had the sudden wicked desire to see what would happen if I got naked in front of the family princess.

"Emmett, you're supposed to stay with him." Her lips were rosy, but pursed tighter than a school marm's. "It's only been four months; you can't control yourself. The last time you lost track of him, you ended up in town and…" Rosalie stopped short when I began to unbutton my shirt. "Just what do you think you're doing?"

"Shirt's dirty," I said, undoing the last one. Shrugging out of the stained fabric, I added, "You want to wash it for me?"

Her topaz eyes narrowed and to her credit, she didn't drop her gaze to my chest when it came into view. She was the most stubborn woman I'd ever known. "I should have let the bear have you."

Shirt in hand, I walked over to her chair and planted one hand on either arm, leaning over her. "You know," I began, pleased when she sank back into the cushions to escape me. I was having an affect on her. Maybe not the one I wanted, but it was a start. "I hear that it helps the whole reading thing if you put the book like this." With that, I turned the upside down book in her hands around to where she could actually read it.

I winked and left the room, heading for the laundry. I didn't need special powers to hear her book hitting the parlor wall with enough force to leave a small dent in the molded plaster.

* * *

There was absolutely no point in playing poker with Edward. But what else was I supposed to do during the long hours until dawn? Esme and Carlisle were holed up in their room. Rosalie hadn't spoken to me all day. I was bored.

I could listen to the radio, but it was all German occupations and Spanish civil wars, human tragedies. There were plenty of books in the library, but I was still learning to read, a fact that only my adoptive parents…and probably Edward, freak that he was…knew about. I'd be damned, if I wasn't already, before Rosalie found out that she'd saved an ignorant mountain man who had barely been able to sign his own name. She'd probably never let me live it down. Or she'd look at me with pity in her eyes, which to me seemed much worse.

After forking over Edward's poker winnings, and holding myself back from wiping the smirk off his face, I left his room and wandered down the long hall towards my bedroom. I supposed I could always carve something for Esme. Every time I presented her with a wooden figure, she acted like I'd given her a diamond.

Halfway to my room, I heard a faint, but heart-wrenching sob from the direction of Rosalie's room. I didn't stop to think. When I reached her door, I pounded on it once, then twice. There was no answer, but I had run out of any self-control I might have had.

It took very little effort to kick the door in. Fortunately the hinges just bent and the door stayed upright. At least I wouldn't have to replace the entire thing once Esme saw it.

But I decided to deal with Esme's anger whenever it came. The door had been an acceptable loss. In the far corner of her room, Rosalie was on the floor, curled up in a tight ball, like she was holding herself together. There were no tears in her eyes, but the look on her crumpled face was enough to rip my gut out.

"Rosie." I wasn't sure where that came from, but it felt good to say it, to call her that. Like we shared something more than a house and a thirst for blood.

She glared at me from behind long, dark lashes. "I didn't say you could come in."

"You didn't say I couldn't, either." I stopped a few feet away from her and crouched down on the thick oriental rug. "Tell me what's wrong."

Her scoffing laugh was probably meant to hurt me, but it came out so sad and broken that it just made me more determined than ever to stay right where I was no matter how many insults she threw at me. "And just why would I choose you as my confidante?"

"Beats me," I admitted, scratching the back of my head. "But you know…I figure that you dragged me away from that bear, dragged me all the way here just to save my sorry hide for a reason."

She sniffed delicately. "I'm sure I can't remember why now."

I looked straight at her, almost daring her to look away. "You could have finished me off and no one would have ever known. But you didn't. You saved my life." I tilted my head to the side. "So I'm guessing that when you treat me like something you wouldn't want to step in…it's really just you pretending not to care about me, because you really care about me a whole lot."

Her eyes were wide and golden. "You have it…all wrong."

"I don't think so."

"You don't know anything about me!"

It was my turn to laugh. "Yes ma'am. But it ain't for lack of trying!"

Maybe it was the "ain't" that made her smile. Whatever caused it, I was just awestruck at the genuine smile that curled up the corners of her lips. It made her whole face light up to the point where it almost hurt to look at her, she was so beautiful. She held out her hand to me. "Help me stand."

It was a regal order worthy of a queen, one I couldn't refuse. Her hand was delicate in mine, pale and perfectly formed. If I hadn't known her strength, I would have been worried I'd crush it in my own huge palm.

She was standing so close to me after I guided her to her feet. I smelled rosewater and lavender…a woman's scent that went straight to my head like moonshine. I tried to shake it off, but it was too late. I was drunk on Rosalie.

"Why must you look at me like that?" she asked, her smile faltering.

"How am I looking at you?"

Rosalie took a step back. "I know what you're thinking when you look at me like that. Edward's told me."

"Edward needs to mind his own business," I growled.

"I asked him to tell me," Rosalie shot back.

"Yeah? And if I went to him right now and asked him what made you so upset a few minutes ago, would he tell me?"

Her chin lifted. "Never."

"And you won't either." I pushed my fingers through my hair. "So I broke down the door for nothing then. Fine." I started to leave. "I won't bother you anymore."

"Emmett." She called my name just before I reached the mangled door. I wanted to keep going, but I couldn't. She sounded too small. Almost frightened. But I refused to turn around to see her. She could talk to my back. "Why haven't you asked how Carlisle found me?"

I answered honestly after a moment's hesitation. "Because I'm afraid to know."

After a long minute, I allowed myself a small glance over my shoulder. She was standing in front of her bedroom window, framed by the night sky. Her blonde curls tumbled over the flimsy sleeves of her flowered dress. She'd changed since that afternoon; this dress hugged her body in all the right places and ended just at her knee. She had legs that went on forever and I had to shake my head to clear away all the bad thoughts I was suddenly having.

Rosalie walked to her bed and sat down on the edge. "I was attacked." She smiled faintly. "Not by a bear."

Although I'd suspected something like this from the way she never let herself look at my body no matter how indecently I put it on display, hearing her actually admit it made my fists curl up. "And the attacker?"

"Attackers." She was watching me carefully. "Taken care of."

I looked up at the ceiling for a long time, trying to remember everything Carlisle had told me about maintaining control over myself. "They're lucky it wasn't me taking care of them," I snarled.

Rosalie tossed her hair over her shoulder. "You don't know what I did to them."

"And I'll never ask. Not until you're ready to tell me."

She nodded, but her eyes refused to meet mine. "Now you know why I can't…why we can't…"

"What are you saying?" Before I could reach her, she had vaulted off the bed and crossed to the window again. "Rosalie…Rosie." I shook my head slowly. "You can't really think that matters to me."

"Of course it matters," she snapped. "How can it not matter?"

I came up behind her. "Because." She let me put my hands on her shoulders, barely even flinching at my touch. "It doesn't. I didn't start feeling this way about you because I thought you were a virgin." I paused. "I think I love you, Rosie."

She spun around, angry shock darkening her eyes. "You can't possibly…"

"I might not be the smartest thing living in this house, but I think I know what I'm feeling."

"You just want to bed me," she whispered. "Like all the others."

I took no small amount of pleasure in reminding her, "Edward doesn't want to bed you." If looks could have killed, I would fallen apart and burst into flames. "Come on, Rosie. You really think I put up with you because I want a quick roll in the sheets?"

"Will you stop calling me that?"

"No, I don't think I will. It kind of suits you." I reached up and brushed the back of my knuckles over her cheek. "You're soft like a rose. You smell like a rose. You've got a few thorns like a rose." I grinned. "And I don't have to tell you that you're pretty like one, do I?"

Rosalie sighed in exasperation. "You're impossible."

"And you're irresistible." To prove it, I leaned in and captured her lips in a deep kiss. I could have kissed her for hours. As it was, I could barely keep from crushing her body to mine and taking her right then. I would take my time with her, be patient, exercise the control I'd learned from Carlisle. She was precious. She was my other half…whether she knew it yet or not.

When I pulled back, her eyes were still shut in what I hoped was pleasure. "Look at me, Rosie." Her lashes fluttered and lifted. "When we do get between the sheets, I am going to make it the best night of your life. I am going to make you scream my name so loud that they'll hear you all the way to the ocean."

Before she could reply, I kissed her again and let my hand drift down to cover the swell of her breast. She whimpered, and it took all the strength I had to tear myself away from her for a second time.

I was halfway to the door when I felt her behind me. She grabbed my hand to stop me and it was all the invitation I needed.

* * *

Undressing Rosalie for the first time, I felt like an explorer discovering a whole new country. Every inch of flesh I exposed I needed to touch. And she let me, saying nothing when I unbuttoned her dress, unhooked her brassiere, slipped off her satin undergarments, rolled down her stockings.

I didn't know a lot about art, except for the pictures I'd seen in one of Carlisle's books when I was really bored one day. But I remembered a statue from the book, the Venus, that had caught my eye. The perfect female body.

The Venus had nothing on my Rosie.

She was tense, I could feel it in her arms even as she looped them around my neck and pulled me down for a kiss. "Rosie," I murmured. "Relax, honey. I'm going to take care of you."

My clothes were already tangled with hers somewhere on the floor beside the bed. I was lying between her endless legs, kissing her like I was starving for her taste. Her breasts pressed against my chest, my fingers played in her silky wetness and I was moments away from joining our bodies, only holding back to make sure she was all right.

Rosalie's cool hands cupped my face. She looked back and forth between my eyes, like she was memorizing me. "This will be my first time," she finally said, quite decisively. "No one before you…and no one after you."

I touched my lips to hers. "Are you ready?" When she nodded, I slowly sank into her.

Edward was a fool for turning this down, and I would be eternally grateful for his stupidity.

I'd been with one or two girls, but Rosalie was a woman, my woman now, and there was no comparison. Making love to Rosalie was so much better than I'd thought it would be, and I'd thought about it a lot. Her legs fit around my body like that was what they had been designed to do. She was slender, but so sturdy beneath me, more than a match for my thrusts which grew harder by the minute.

When she called out my name like I'd told her she would, I lost it. I buried my face in the sweet-smelling crook of her neck and let go. Nothing else existed in the whole world but me and Rosalie.

I opened my eyes to the sight of a thoroughly sated woman below me whose lithe fingers were twisting around the thick locks of hair at the base of my neck. I had intended to cut them, but I supposed I could put that off until another day. Or another decade.

"Will it always be like this?" she wondered out loud.

I was still buried inside of her, still loving the feeling. Rather than wanting to roll over and fall asleep as I had in the past, I was quite sure I could go all night if she was up for it. "I sure as hell hope so."

Rosalie dragged her lower lip between her sharp teeth and I felt myself stirring again. "I think I love you, too, Emmett," she told me, like it was our secret to share. "And not just because you gave me this. Just because."

It was good enough for me. Maybe there isn't any better reason to love someone than "just because."

"My Rosie." I kissed her again because I could. Because she was mine. "Does this mean you'll wash my shirts for me now?"

Her smile was sweet and deadly. "Perhaps I should have saved the bear."

* * *

To Be Continued


	3. Some Enchanted Evening

Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: To follow.

* * *

It Had to Be You

by Kristen Elizabeth

* * *

**1951**

The first time Jasper and I made love was the night we met in Philadelphia. I'd arrived in the city three days earlier and while waiting for the handsome man from my vision to find me, I'd discovered an abandoned house in a nice neighborhood where I could hide out from the sun.

When he finally appeared at the diner, he was rain-soaked, battle-scarred, thoroughly wary, a little bit wild and completely perfect. He called me "ma'am," a gentleman from another time. I already knew I was going to love him, but I was still pleased at how just how fast it happened.

Despite everything I'd seen in my mind, I hadn't known we would make love that night. But when I took him back to the house and offered him one of the two bedrooms, he took my hand again and asked if he could stay with me.

We ended up on the dusty floor, only bothering to push aside enough clothes to join together. I had no idea if I was a virgin before that night. I like to think I was, though. Jasper had already become everything to me. It only seemed right that he be my first lover.

As we were lying together looking up at the muslin-draped chandelier, I told him about the family we'd be joining soon. I was so excited about the prospect that I could barely keep still, but only seconds later I felt so relaxed that I almost forgot about the beautiful faces from my vision.

"What are you doing?" I murmured into his chest, too at peace to put up any sort of real protest.

Jasper wrapped his arms around me tighter. "You have your gifts, Alice. I have mine."

We spent the next two years in empty houses, barns, and even the occasional night in the forest under the stars, always together, never apart. We fed as little as possible; humans were intoxicating, but taking their lives never agreed with me. I always saw things just before our teeth sank into their flesh, their hopes, dreams, their very futures blinking into darkness. I didn't learn until years later that Jasper disliked it, too, being that he could feel what our victims felt, the fear and the pain. I hadn't yet told him about the change in our diet that was coming.

Jasper was my companion, my lover, my whole world until we found the Cullens. After that day, I had a mother, a father, two brothers and a sister...and one seriously amazing view from my new bedroom, once I moved Edward's things to the garage. My world became bigger, but Jasper was still the center of it. .

One night a year later, we lay in bed listening to the lonely notes of Edward's piano through the wall that separated our room from his new one.

"You know…we're safe now," Jasper began. "Safer, at least. Carlisle and Edward are teaching me to control myself and you're so happy with Esme and Rosalie. This a good place for us."

"Yes." I snuggled deeper into his arms, thoroughly pleased. "That's why I saw us here."

"But I don't think of you as a sister." His moved his hand to the small of my back, possessively. "I never will, even if pretending to be a family with the Cullens makes it easier for us to be around humans." He winced a bit on the last word.

I saw his question and before he could change his mind, I made up mine. "Oh Jazz," I whispered, sitting up to see him better. "I don't want to be your sister, either. I want to be your wife."

* * *

Planning the wedding was the most fun I'd ever had. Esme indulged my every whim; there was no expense she spared from the decorations to the food we wouldn't even eat. Perhaps even without visions of her own, she could see that unlike Rosalie who had already married Emmett twice, once before the war and once after, this would be my first and only wedding day.

There was no minister; what would a man of God have had to say at the joining of two immortal creatures? Carlisle married us and his blessing was all we really needed. I walked myself down the aisle, floating on a cloud of white organdy and tulle. There were only a handful of witnesses outside of our family: the like-minded vampires from Denali, colleagues of Carlisle's from the local hospital who just accepted that he was an ordained minister like they accepted that he was half their ages and so much better at healing, and a few schoolmates of Edward's and Rosalie's, the ones who'd been brave enough to make the long trip from town to our house. We've always made our schoolmates nervous, especially Jasper when he was ready to attend several years later.

But on that day, I only had eyes for my lover as he stood tall and proud beside Edward and Emmett, wearing a brand new suit I'd picked out for him, his blond curls tamed for the moment. With joined hands, we promised to love, honor, and protect each other, nothing that we hadn't done since the moment we met. At Carlisle's bidding, Jasper lifted my veil and kissed me for the first time as my husband.

It was in the middle of the reception as I pretended to eat canapé for the benefit of a girl from Rosalie's English class who couldn't stop gushing on about my admittedly fantastic wedding dress that I first saw the cabin in my mind. Immediately, I sought out Jasper's face across the room. He was already looking at me, a small smile curling up his lips.

The image of our bodies writhing together by the light of a hundred candles was enough to make me grab for the nearest solid object. And while the details of Jasper's plan for the night weren't entirely clear, I knew one thing for certain: it was time for us to leave the party.

* * *

In a shower of rice, a silly tradition that I absolutely adored, we drove off in Edward's Jaguar Mark VII, which was only on loan as he'd reminded us several times during the reception. I'd changed into a dark blue dress with a full skirt and wrapped a scarf around my head and shoulders for the drive. Jasper had the car up to 105 on the back roads that led deeper into our hunting woods. I felt like I was flying.

"Can it go faster?" I asked eagerly.

Jasper was already slowing down as he turned off the main road. "We'll have to wait to find out. We're here."

The cabin was tucked away like whoever built it had been trying to hide from the world. It was rustic and completely charming. I love it and we hadn't even gone inside yet.

At the front door, Jasper swept me up into his arms, somehow managing to balance me and the one bag of clothes I'd been allowed to bring along. Clinging to him, I laughed and kissed his cheek. "I'm so glad you decided to do that. You weren't sure; you kept changing your mind in the car."

"It's my pleasure, Mrs. Whitlock." It was the first time he'd called me that; I was thrilled. He nudged the door open with his foot and stepped inside.

My grasp on his shoulders faltered and I might have slipped to the floor if he hadn't had such a good grip on me. I was dumbfounded by what lay inside, even after what I'd seen in my vision. It hadn't prepared me for the lengths to which my new husband had gone.

The entire cabin was illuminated by hundreds of white candles in various sizes and heights, all placed around the biggest bed I'd ever seen which sat in the center of the room. It was made up with sheets the color of snow; the hand-crocheted eyelet cover was scattered with red rose petals.

Jasper set me back on my feet. Even in my stiletto heels, I had to tilt my head back to look up at him. "How did you...?"

"Emmett ran up here and lit them during the reception."

"I didn't notice him gone."

He arched an eyebrow. "He's rather quick on his feet."

I clasped my hands together at my heart. "You arranged all of this?"

"Well, I had some help. Emmett, like I said. And Edward...the candles were his idea." He snorted softly. "The kid's a born romantic."

"He's going to make some girl very happy someday." I shook my head, lost in my own happiness. "I can't believe you did this for me."

"Alice." He cupped my face in his hands and leaned down to brush a kiss across my mouth. "There is nothing I wouldn't do for you. Don't you realize that by now?"

As I kissed him back, the only answer I had to give, I carefully pried the handle of my overnight bag out of his hand. He pulled back and gave me a knowing look. "Whatever you're planning to change into, you won't be wearing it for very long."

"But you can't wait to see what it is, can you?"

Jasper considered this. "I won't stop you," he eventually decided.

I blew him a kiss as I slipped into the washroom to change. He'd made the right choice. Even Edward had grudgingly approved of the black lace nightgown when I'd shown it to him. I reminded myself not to be quite so eager to share such things with him in the future. He was, after all, my brother now.

Jasper had shrugged out of his suit jacket, loosened his tie, and undone the top three buttons of his shirt by the time I came out of the washroom. The look on his face when he saw me made the nightgown worth every single penny.

"Do you like it?" I asked unnecessarily. "I saw it and…"

He moved so fast that even I didn't see him coming. I never got to finish saying how I'd picked the lingerie because it felt old-fashioned, like him. Jasper's kiss was as deep and thrilling as it had been on that first night in Philadelphia. My feet left the ground as he lifted me up to put our mouths on the same level as we kissed.

Minutes, maybe hours later, I drew back. Safe in his unfaltering embrace, I studied him solemnly. "Tell me we'll always be together."

Jasper's eyes, so much lighter now than when we'd met, crinkled at the corners as he smiled. "Nothing will part us. I won't allow it."

Wrapping my arms around his neck, I kissed him hard enough to nick his lower lip with my teeth. The best thing about being with Jasper was that I never felt nervous or scared or apprehensive about anything. And it wasn't because he used his powers on me; I was just completely free from any stress when he was near because as long as I could see him and touch him, everything was just fine in my world. He was right. Nothing would part us. I wouldn't allow it, either.

I was almost disappointed when the very carefully chosen, very expensive nightgown ended up in a heap of dark lace on the floor. I had hoped to wear it a little longer, but in all fairness, Jasper had warned me about its fate.

His shirt joined my dress on the floor after he carefully laid me on the bed. Propped up on my elbows, I watched him lick his lip, tasting the tiniest drop of my venom. The candlelight threw warm light onto his skin, almost lessening the visibility of his scars.

Two years earlier, he would have kept his shirt on to hide them, but now he bared himself without shame, knowing, I hoped, that I loved every scar, not only individually, but as part of the whole man.

"You're too far away," I told him with a pout.

In a flash, Jasper's body covered mine. I was open and ready for him, but still…the feelings that coursed through me when his flesh entered mine had me crying out to the shadows dancing on the ceiling. I gripped his upper back, my nails digging into his muscles as he moved within me, faster and harder, but never savage.

"Alice, Alice…darlin'…" he groaned into my neck. It was only when he was lost in passion like this that his accent shone through. He was too close to the edge too soon; I decided to slow things down just a bit.

It took barely any effort on my part to reverse our positions. I winked down at him and he let me pin his arms to the bed as our hips rolled, back and forth, up and down, crashing into each other over and over again.

When ecstasy washed over me, I had a vision. Perhaps it was my state of mind at the moment, but it wasn't like my others. It was something different entirely…a crystal clear image of Jasper and I together like this someday, in the front seat of a sleek, yellow, futuristic-looking car.

I told him about it a little while later and he laughed, his chest rumbling against my ear. "Maybe they'll fly by then."

It was an exciting thought, but not nearly as wonderful as the idea of the future itself, my unending eternity with my husband, my first, my last, my only love.

* * *

Fin

A/N: Well, thank you so much for reading this story. I had a great time writing it, so great in fact that I kind of want to start the next trilogy, the next generation, if you will. The werewolves and their women;) If you'd be interested, let me know. Thanks again for stopping by and for all of your kind, kind words.


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